NASA’s new solar sail design bends light to propel spacecraft efficiently

NASA has selected a fascinating new project for further development, known as the Diffractive Solar Sail. By bending light before it hits the sail, this device could propel spacecraft more efficiently than conventional propulsion technologies.Continue … Continue reading NASA’s new solar sail design bends light to propel spacecraft efficiently

Seashell-inspired material makes for strong, light spacecraft shielding

Inspired by seashells, scientists at Sandia National Laboratories have engineered a versatile new material that’s incredibly inexpensive, strong, lightweight, and heat resistant. The material could find use in shielding for spacecraft or fusion facilit… Continue reading Seashell-inspired material makes for strong, light spacecraft shielding

Mercury Thrusters: A Worldwide Disaster Averted Just In Time

The field of space vehicle design is obsessed with efficiency by necessity. The cost to do anything in space is astronomical, and also heavily tied to launch weight. Thus, any …read more Continue reading Mercury Thrusters: A Worldwide Disaster Averted Just In Time

James Webb snaps first in-focus image – and photobombs another spacecraft

The James Webb Space Telescope has snapped its first in-focus image. The milestone comes after the mission team spent the last few weeks aligning its mirrors, and the telescope is now set to meet or even exceed its original science goals. It was also r… Continue reading James Webb snaps first in-focus image – and photobombs another spacecraft

NASA selects two new Venus missions to investigate why it’s so awful

Venus should have been Earth’s twin, but clearly that’s not the case today, with its thick poisonous atmosphere and barren rocky surface. Now, as part of its Discovery Program, NASA has selected two new missions to Venus to investigate where it all wen… Continue reading NASA selects two new Venus missions to investigate why it’s so awful

Virgin Galactic reaches space from Spaceport America for the first time

Virgin Galactic has put a recent setback behind it to reach space for only the third time in its history, and the first time since relocating to its new Spaceport America base in New Mexico last year. The company’s successful test flight over the weeke… Continue reading Virgin Galactic reaches space from Spaceport America for the first time

New Horizons snaps photo of Voyager 1 from 11 billion miles away

NASA’s New Horizons currently has a lot of time on its hands as it coasts through vast emptiness towards interstellar space. The probe has just passed a new milestone distance on the journey, and celebrated by taking a snap of its predecessor Voyager 1… Continue reading New Horizons snaps photo of Voyager 1 from 11 billion miles away